Having just returned from my annual pilgrimage out west, I once again find myself wondering why we still have not got on board in regard to developing true quality fishing experiences here in the northeast. Additionally, after reading a piece on the "crowds" and the "commercial interests taking over" out west, I couldn't help but wonder how many folks really know what is going on there versus here. It's like those who state "We don't need another Yellowstone here in Maine" yet have never been there?

The reality is that western fishing (read, "Trout") at its worse; rival's northeast fishing at its best. As for crowds, other than the Salmon Fly fiasco which lasts only a few weeks, most blue-ribbon western waters are usually far less crowded than the more popular waters found here in the northeast. Don't believe me; just try to get a spot on the Roach River in September, the Rapid River in late May, the West Branch in late June, or any one of our better brook trout ponds in mid July.

While angler's fish elbow to elbow and routinely cross lines in the Warden's Pool on the Roach River during peak season, rarely if ever do I feel "crowded" out west. The same goes for the Rapid River where early this spring you had to wait for someone to leave to get a decent spot. As for lakes and ponds, while 20+ boats are not uncommon on my favorite 35 acre brook trout pond here in Maine during the hex hatch, I rarely if ever see anywhere near that many boats or tubes on my favorite western stillwater's.

The reality is that OUR quality fishing is often far more crowded than that found out west. Worse is that angling ethics and what is considered "acceptable" is far worse here in the northeast than it is out west. While many northeastern anglers think nothing of muscling in on another angler (and to within mere feet!), I have only felt unreasonably crowded once out west and that was by a young "tourist" who simply did not know any better (I often wonder if he was from back east?).

While fishing Soda Butte creek in Yellowstone in mid August this year, I found the right stretch of water and the right fly. Hooking one fish after another it was clear to those upstream and downstream of me that I was into something very special. With anglers spread out far beyond that normally found back east, while many looked, none moved in to crowd me. Conversely, last year on both the Piscataquis and the Roach I was forced to say something to anglers who moved in far too close and actually snagged my line.

As for other waters I fished, we saw no other anglers on Harriman's Ranch (Henry's Fork), two other boats during 6+ hours on the Box Canyon, two other boats during 8+ hours on the Madison, a handful of boats while floating 25+ miles of the South Fork Canyon, and amazingly enough, just one other boat while floating the Snake River in Teton National Park (don't want those crowded parks here in Maine!). The scene repeated itself over a 21 day stay and while we saw plenty of anglers, we never felt crowded.

As for guides and outfitters taking over out west, every instance I am aware of where legislation was used to address a usage problem, the private citizen won out (the Beaverhead comes to mind where outfitters are not allowed to float on certain days of the week). On the South Fork of the Snake in Idaho, guides must work through an outfitter and outfitters are allowed only a certain number of trips per day per stretch of river. Once again, preference was given to the private citizen who has no such restrictions.

Even when left to the discretion of the guides and outfitters, while I will admit to having some minor problems over the years, most professionals out west show very good judgment by keeping their clients away from private citizens. The same cannot always be said for northeast guides and outfitters who take clients to such crowded public water as the Roach (a guide and two "sports" spent all day on the prime spot in the Warden's Pool one day last year during peak season).

The bottom line is that the west has a much better handle on creating a quality fishing experience than we in the east do. You see this in the merchants (well stocked and staffed fly shops, convenient hours, etc.), guides/outfitters (skilled, courteous, and readily available), and anglers (courteous and conservation minded). At no time did we come off the water and find ourselves unable to find a meal - a common problem here in Maine. Additionally, we never saw a fish killed in over 20 days (and this is the norm).

As I have said before, while we in the northeast may have a fly fishing "heritage", we do not yet have a fly fishing "culture". The fisheries managers out west have found a way to offer a substantial amount of quality fishing opportunities while not shutting out the casual angler. Here in the northeast, it is the serious angler who is most often shut out (i.e., very little water is managed for absolute quality). This is exactly why we find ourselves fighting heavy crowds anywhere worth fishing and I believe why our angler ethics are not always sound - we have far too few opportunities available to us!

Like much else that is going on today regarding our sporting heritage, we live in a world of misinformation and half truths. I suppose this makes dealing with our own shortcomings a little easier rather than facing the fact that we are not doing nearly enough to protect and enhance our outdoor experiences. By continuing to muddy the water, cloud the issues, and deny the obvious, we keep our sportsmen in the dark and cover up the fact that things could be much better up here.

If there was any one thing I could do to help fix it, it would be to send Commissioner Martin, Deputy Commissioner Jacques, Director of Fisheries Boland, and several of our biologists out west for a "Fishing Vacation". Maybe then they would see for themselves what we in Maine are missing out on and what they could do to address it. Until then, I am afraid we will just have to keep going west to fish and spend our hard-earned money in Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, etc., versus here in Maine.